With Cooper down, McNutt stands tall

Tom Rimback @RimbackBCT

Monday

Jul 30, 2012 at 12:01 AM

BETHLEHEM, Pa. — There’s no time to pause and reflect in training camp. When one player goes down, another has to take his place.

Nothing personal.

Marvin McNutt and the rest of the Eagles’ wide receiver corps were shaken by the news of Riley Cooper’s broken collarbone. Unfortunate as any injury is, it’s still an opportunity. One McNutt wasted no time to take advantage of.

“He had a good day (Saturday) and that was good to see,” coach Andy Reid said. “He’s a big, physical kid. You saw him attack the football and he made some big plays.”

Of the young receivers in line to fill in for Cooper while he recuperates, McNutt is the closest in size and temperament. He’ll go up and get the ball, if needed.

A top receiver at the University of Iowa, the Eagles’ sixth-round draft pick isn’t taking anything for granted.

“I still have a lot of things to learn,” McNutt said. “I haven’t been an NFL receiver for very long. You can’t ever feel like you’ve arrived. That’s how you get complacent. You always have to strive to get better.”

He’s a good guy

Sunday morning’s walk through consisted mostly of special teams work so some players who weren’t needed were excused early. LeSean McCoy, Jeremy Maclin, DeSean Jackson and Brent Celek left first. The quarterbacks left soon after. Other players left in dribs and drabs but one player didn’t take full advantage of the early dismissal.

Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie took a slight detour toward a small cluster of fans watching the walkthrough and spent more than 20 minutes signing items and talking with the fans who came out to watch the otherwise uneventful walkthrough.

Highlight reel

Michael Vick rifled a 25-yard out to DeSean Jackson through double coverage right at the sideline ... King Dunlap delivered a punishing block on Oshiomogho Atogwe to allow Dion Lewis to dance down the sideline for a touchdown on a screen pass ... Jamel Hamler had a pair of spectacular catches that should help in his quest to stick with the team as a wide receiver ... LeSean McCoy fumbled once, and the defense tallied a pair of interceptions, one each by Kurt Coleman and Rodgers-Cromartie.

He swallowed a what?

Jason Babin is expected to miss about a week with what Reid called a “calf strain.’’ The coach then caused a moment of confusion when trying to explain why the full extent of the injury hadn’t been determined.

“He swallowed one of those thermometers,” Reid said.

Babin did indeed swallow a thermometer, but it wasn’t the kind that mothers keep in the medicine cabinet. Players swallow a small high-tech capsule that can be monitored externally by the team’s medical staff during practice.

The Eagles know all about Babin’s core body temperature but they’ll have to wait until the capsule works its way out of his system before Magnetic Resonance Imaging can be performed on his injured calf.

Other injuries

Cooper will miss the remainder of camp with a broken collarbone. Surgery is scheduled for Monday. Cooper will get a plate in his collarbone. He should miss at least six weeks.

Brent Celek is making progress with his slight knee sprain, though his return isn’t imminent. Antonio Dixon, who left Saturday’s afternoon practice with cramps, is fully recovered.

Resident alien

Punter Mat McBriar is at Lehigh but hasn’t been cleared to practice with the team yet. The eight-year veteran former Cowboys punter is waiting on a work visa. An Australian like former Eagles punter Sav Rocca, he should be on the field later this week.